


Into the Stars

by SuperQueeroTrash



Category: Supergirl (Comics), Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Science Fiction, Alternate Universe - Star Trek Fusion, Angst with a Happy Ending, Anxiety, Canon Disabled Character, Enemies to Lovers, F/F, Friends to Enemies, Nightmares, Psychic Abilities, Psychological Torture, Slow Burn, SuperCorp, Torture
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-02
Updated: 2019-03-13
Packaged: 2019-07-01 15:24:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 15,064
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15776823
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SuperQueeroTrash/pseuds/SuperQueeroTrash
Summary: Lena Luthor is top in her class at the Luthor Science Academy, and she’s ready for a command of her own. Will an unexpected promotion and the arrival of new crew member knock her off balance, or will Lena rise to the challenge?And just who is that reporter why is she looking at Lena like that?





	1. Graduation

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Do not go gentle into that good night](https://archiveofourown.org/works/9438548) by [Khrat9](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Khrat9/pseuds/Khrat9). 
  * Inspired by [Beyond the Horizon](https://archiveofourown.org/works/12349848) by [Khrat9](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Khrat9/pseuds/Khrat9). 

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She catches the womans's eyes again. Lena waits, impatiently, for the last students to walk, for the parents, friends, and onlookers to finish with their zillionth round of applause, and Lena leaves. The emotions of the crowd nearly overwhelming her. The only relief coming in the stillness of the blonde woman’s gaze.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been wanting to write a SuperCorp fic for a while now, and after reading Khrat9's "In Every Life, In Every Other World" series, I was really inspired. I've been playing a lot of Mass Effect lately, so that inspired the Sci-fi setting, though it's more reminiscent of Star Trek. 
> 
> Hopefully y'all like it!
> 
> (Special thanks to my wife, Minerva_Minion, for editing this and generally helping me make it better.)

Graduation isn’t what she expected. Of course she _did_ expect the celebration, the fanfare, the applause. Graduating into the SpaceForce is a big deal after all.

“I am proud to present to you, the first ever graduating class of the Luthor Science Academy.” The Academy Head Reynold’s voice echoes throughout the hall and over the heads of the robed students, each awaiting their diplomas.  
  
She expected to hate the crowds, full as they were of people staring at her, only to look away when she’d make eye contact, afraid of how naked her gaze made them feel. It didn’t help that she hadn’t gotten any sleep, instead she spent all night straightening her hair, picking out her clothes and getting her makeup just right. A layer of armor to protect herself from the world and all the ways she can be misunderstood.  
  
She _hadn’t_ expected to enjoy herself, if only fleetingly. This is her day, time to celebrate _her_ accomplishments. Normally she’d shy away from anything where people wanted to congratulate her. But today is different. This time she’s done it all on her own, with no help from her brother. Her four years with Captain Sinclair are her accomplishment and no one else's.

Two years of war and two years of belligerent “peace”, and they are all hers.  
  
“Every one of our graduates has struggled, endured hardships, and sacrificed in order to be here.” Head Reynold’s booms into the mic. “And we are gathered here in honor of all of them. Yet there is one student who stands out from all the rest - whose intelligence, quick thinking, and leadership skills have proven her to be worthy of the highest honors, of both this institution and the Sol System’s Alliance’s SpaceForce. And whose struggles have been unique amongst our students. A recipient of the _Star Cross_ and _Scientific Legion of Honor,_ this student survived a disease that should have killed her, fought through her paralysis, to be the woman _standing_ before us today. While in the midst of war, this student forged a team of explorers, scientists, and fighters, affectionately dubbed “L-Corp”, and last but not least, this remarkable woman saved all our lives, and the entire Sol System’s Alliance, with her skillfully researched deployment of isotope Kr100.”

“And she did all this _before_ graduating our prestigious academy.”

“Everyone, I give you, Lena Luthor!”

Applause fills the auditorium.

Lena’s cheeks redden at Head Reynold’s words, they were all true of course, but hearing herself praised so unambiguously is still a new feeling, and one that she isn’t entirely comfortable with.

Lena rises from her seat and walks across the platform. A moment of victory for her, not over her disability like Reynold’s claimed, but over her brother and his ego. She stands here today, her lower back shooting out tendrils of pain, to spite her brother, who had let his arrogance triumph over what she wanted. The head smiles at her as they offer their hand. Lena accepts it and they shake. Turning back to the audience, the Head grips the podium in front of them.

“We are pleased to present Lena Luthor with the Queen Certification of Excellence, historically presented only to our most accomplished students, Lt. Commander Luthor will be the first to receive it as a student of the Luthor Science Academy.”

Looking out over the crowd Lena sees how uncomfortable they all are, only her friends Luke and Eli making eye contact with her, other than them no one wanted to congratulate her. They are here for their own family and friends, or because she’s a Luthor and they have certain _expectations._ There is, however, one stranger whose eyes don’t turn away, that aren’t filled with fear, hatred, or worry. Looking at her from behind glasses and blond hair, and the only thing Lena senses is curiosity. Whatever else is behind those eyes, she can’t feel it. The woman is like the calm in the center of a storm, a single bright spot when all else is darkness.

Lena closes her eyes as Head Reynolds pulls out a medal. She feels the ribbon slip over her bowed head and onto her neck. The last time she was paraded in front of a crowd, being decorated was when she’d received the _Star Cross._ An award Lex had picked her for, souring any enjoyment she might have gotten from it.

 

The main reason she agreed to be here at all and accept this award is because she knows for sure Lex isn’t behind it, last she heard he had tried to block her from graduating at all. One more reason for them not to be speaking.

 

Lena opens her eyes and Reynolds has been replaced at the podium by her Captain, Veronica Sinclair. She nods at her and Lena returns to her seat. Veronica speaks on her time as Lena’s Captain, their adventures before, during and after the war and Lena smiles.

  
**  

 

One by one each student accepts their diploma and returns to their seat; which, aside from her friend Jess accepting hers, Lena finds unremarkable, and it passes through her mind in a haze.

She catches the blonde's eyes again. Lena waits, impatiently, for the last students to walk, for the parents, friends, and onlookers to finish with their zillionth round of applause, and Lena leaves. The emotions of the crowd nearly overwhelming her. The only relief coming in the stillness of the blonde woman’s gaze.

 

Outside the Grand Hall, in the sunlight, without all eyes on her, Lena is able to breathe again and enjoy the moment for what it is. Her back still feels like it’s on fire, but that will have to wait.

 

Her friends emerge from the mass of people, Eli running, with Luke following behind, members of her so-called L-Corp.

 

“Who’d have thought that the little scared girl I found all those years ago would be here today. You make me proud Luthor.” Luke beams at her, pride in his gaze.”

 

Luke is several years above her and had graduated during the war, before the SpaceForce Academy was renamed in honor of her father.

 

“Lena, so many firsts for you.” Eli chimes in, his smile hiding a hint of jealousy. “First graduate class since the war, first class since the school was renamed, first student ever to receive a _Star Cross.”_

 

“Don’t worry Eli, first doesn’t always mean best. You are gonna be so much better than I could hope to be.” Lena says.

 

Eli laughs and nudges her shoulder. “You think so?”

 

“Yeah.”

 

She more than thinks so, she knows, the way she always does, that he is destined for great things. The same way she knew fourteen years ago when Luke found her and brought her to Captain Sinclair and SpaceForce, that no matter how scared she was, no matter how gruff and short he was with her, she was safe with him. Safer than she’d been at home with Lillian. Or with Lex…

 

“What’re our plans for the rest of the day?” Luke asks.

 

“We’re going to wait for Jess to wrench herself free from her family and then figure it out from there.”

 

As if summoned Jess appears at Lena’s side, her excitement palpable, a nice counter-balance to Lena’s desire to let the ceremony end and move on to other things.

 

Jess has already removed her graduation gown, revealing a silky dress that hangs off her broad shoulders and slender hips.

 

“I’m hungry. You ready to bounce?” Jess asks.

 

Luke & Eli answer in the affirmative and the three pairs of eyes turn to Lena. She’s not paying any attention, looking around to see if the woman is anywhere. The eye of the storm. She isn’t and Lena frowns.  
  
“Earth to Lena.” Eli’s voice cuts through Lena’s reverie.

 

“Yes?” Lena says hazily. ”Sorry, I was looking for someone.”  
  
“Oh? Who?”

 

“Just some woman I saw earlier.”

 

“A girl? Weren’t you done with girls, dates, and all that?” Jess crosses her arms over her chest.

  
Lena shakes her head. “Yes. If I change my mind you’ll be the first one to know. Now I have to have change before we leave.” She motions to Luke, who hands her a bag of clothing.

 

“Why, you look great?”  
  
“She looks like she’s been up all night.” Disapproval fills Luke’s voice.

 

Jess looks at her with barely concealed worry in her eyes. “Not only did she _not_ sleep, she’s had _it_ on all night, and now all morning. Haven’t you?”  
  
“Yes…it’s going on fourty-eight hours. There was so much to do, I couldn’t afford the rest!!” Lena looks away, avoiding her friend’s glare.

 

“Why didn’t you tell us?” Eli asks. “We could have helped you!”

 

She sighs. “I’m going to go take a minute, change my clothes, rest. I’ll meet you all at the car.”

 

Eli begins to protest, before being cut off by Jess.

 

“That’s a great idea. And when you get back, you can tell me how you got your makeup to look so perfect.” Jess smiles at her, and Lena feels the warmth exuded by her friends surround her. It’s clear their disapproval is only because they care, and that helps Lena feel less alone.

 

“Thanks.” Her smile is genuine as she heads back to change.

 

***  
  
The Grand Hall has several dressing rooms and Lena ducks into the nearest one. In her bag are some more comfortable clothes, a necessity after enduring the stifling dress for hours one end. What she picked out still projected her Luthor image, but it is also a bit more her, less tight and controlled. Something she can safely wear to lunch with friends.

She lays her bag on the nearby bench, and sheds the robe and the dress underneath. Sitting on the bench - nearly naked, Lena revels in the feel of cool wood on her skin. What she needs is a private moment, away from fearful eyes and caring friends; she reaches out with her mind and confirms that she is indeed alone. Bracing herself against the wall, with her mind Lena flips the switch that controls her spinal implant. The fire in her back subsides and she feels herself breathing freely again.

 

It is thanks to the implant she was able to stand in front of everyone today, looking every bit the imperious Luthor they expected her to be. The Luthor mask of indifference provides her a way to hide the pain caused by the implant. The electrical impulses it sends throughout her lower spine, force dead and disconnected nerves to live again, and cause excruciating pain. But it is worth it when people no longer see the “sad little girl”  the Luthor’s so _lovingly_ cared for. It’s worth knowing she’s here in spite of the one who had spent his days and nights looking after his _sick little sister_.

  
Using her mind, she lifts the clothes out her bag, watching as they dance in the air around her. Lena grabs her skirt from the air and, with the same effort of lifting weights, lifts her legs with her mind and pulls the skirt up and on. Her hand is on her shirt when she sees a reflection in the mirror that isn’t hers.

 

“What are you doing here? How long have you been standing there?”

 

“Oh God.” The woman’s hand darts to her eyes. “I, uh, didn’t see anything. I swear. You were putting your shirt on. That’s it.”

 

Lena flips the switch on her implant, stands, and quickly pulls on her shirt. In front of her is a blond haired woman, peering out from behind her hands. Lena senses the same calm and same inability to read the woman that she felt earlier.  

 

The blond turns to leave and Lena calls out to her. “Just who are you exactly?”

 

The woman turns back to her, looking sheepish.

 

“Uh, I’m Kara Danvers. I’m...”

 

“Just tell me what you’re doing here, watching me change. You’re not a stalker are you? I don’t need another one of those.”

 

“Uh, no. No, I’m not a stalker. I’m with the Collegian Torch, sort of. I just wanted to talk.”

 

“The academy’s student paper? I already told your editor I’m not giving any interviews and following me to the dressing room isn’t conducive to changing my mind.”  
  
Kara’s eyes go wide. “I’m sorry, I was just waiting for the right time, which clearly isn’t now.”

 

“Just ask me what you want to ask me Miss Danvers.”

“You’re clearly busy. I’ve interrupted, that is, taken up enough of your time. I really should go.” Despite her words, the reporter doesn’t move. Lena catches her eyes again, except this time she has a name to go with them. _Kara_. Through her eyes Lena senses hesitation, curiosity, and desire… A desire for what, Lena can’t quite tell. It obviously goes beyond a desire for an interview. And Kara is cute. In that adorkable way girls with glasses often are. So Lena offers her a crumb.

 

“Tell you what.” Lena raises her eyebrow. “Right now I have a lunch date with friends, but you give me your number, and I’ll meet you later and you can ask me whatever you want.”    
  
Kara, nearly speechless, hands Lena a card with her number on it. “There you go Miss Luthor.”    
  
“Thank you Miss Danvers.” She gathers her things and walks out of the dressing room leaving the poor baffled reporter alone.  
  


***

 

Jess, Eli, and Luke are chatting outside her car when she approaches.

 

“There you are.” Jess smiles.

 

“We were beginning to wonder if you were coming back.” Eli says.

 

“You weren’t meeting with anyone, were you?” Luke teases.

 

“Just you three.”

 

“So you weren’t in there with that woman who's walking out right behind you? No relation at all to the one you were looking for earlier of course.” Jess teases, knowingly, not exactly disapproving, but clearly not approving either.

 

Lena sighs. “Let’s just get something to eat, I’m starving.”

 

“Fine, we’ll let this go, for now.” Lena knows that Jess isn’t going to let it go but she smiles anyway.

 

The four of them climb into Lena’s car. Lena tells the computer where they’re going, and the car lifts off the ground and into the lanes of shuttle traffic. “The auto-flight mode’s been a bit buggy lately. Let’s hope we end up at the right place.”

 

“All the more reason you should let me at the controls.” Eli’s eyes gleaming at the thought getting to fly.

 

“You are not going anywhere near those. Remember the last time we let you pilot?”

 

“I remember how much fun it was.”

 

“We almost died Eli! That wasn’t fun.” Jess exclaims.

 

“It’s not my fault Lena’s car wasn’t built to handle the touch of a genius.”

 

Lena nudges him with her elbow. “Don’t diss my car. It’s a very good car.” Her car is one of a kind, another _perk_ of being a Luthor, she always gets things no one else has. Laughter echoes through the car. The rest of the ride is filled with brief discussions of the best  & worst parts of the graduation ceremony, who’s speeches were snooze worthy, and whose were mildly interesting.

 

They arrive at the restaurant and once the car is parked, they climb out. Lena feels her stomach gnaw at itself, not having eaten since yesterday morning. Inside the scent of cooking food wafts through the air. The varying cuisines served at the Talon blend together in a uniquely appetising aroma that serves only to wet Lena’s appetite further.  

 

The computerised host directs them to a table in the back of the restaurant. Everyone grabs a seat and places their orders in the table console. Waiting to eat, conversation strikes up again.

 

“I hope we’ll all still be with Captain Sinclair, I can’t imagine serving with anyone else.” Doubt flows from Eli in waves. With two more years at school, Lena can tell he’s worrying about being left behind.

 

“That’s not gonna happen.” Lena fills her voice with as much assurance and comfort as she can.

 

“Besides, no other Captain would have you.” Jess taunts. “Not after Veronica claimed you.”

 

“Claimed us.” Eli corrects. “She picked all four of us. Not just me.” He mumbles.

 

It’s true that while it was Lena’s leadership and strategy that brought them all so close, it was Veronica Sinclair’s choice to force them all together that paved the way for them to become L-Corp.

 

Lena sits silently amidst the banter, and catches Luke’s eyes, smiling to herself. The two of them already knew where they’d be, Luke had found out and told her, after making Lena promise not to tell the rest of course.

 

“We’re gonna be fine. They wouldn’t dare mess with L-Corp.” She says.

 

“Even if we were separated, it’s not like we couldn’t keep in touch.” Luke takes a bite of the complimentary bread and Lena catches a sadness in the corner of his eyes. She prepares to ask him about it, only to get the impression this is a discussion for another time.

 

The waitress comes by with the food and sets the plates down in front of them, Eli flirts with her, ignoring Jess’s disapproval and Luke’s chagrin.  
  
Before shoving her food in her face, Lena takes a moment to pull out the card with Kara’s number on it and send off a message indicating when and where to meet; hoping she isn’t letting her curiosity about the reporter get the best of her. Lena looks over her _L-corp_ and smiles to herself; despite what everyone else expected of her, as a girl in a hoverchair or the one who ended the war, or Lex Luthor’s sister, she knows that these three always have her back.

 

***

_At the age of ten, Lena was diagnosed with a disease that most doctors expected to kill her. It left her unable to eat, speak, move, or breathe on her own. During that time Lex never left her side, except to work on a cure. The first night she slept on her own, all the machines whirring around her, was when the nightmares came. When she saw dead eyes, disappearing loved ones, anger, sadness, death, darkness, and destruction._

_Unable to scream, unable to move, unable to do anything but cry... That was also the night she first moved something with her mind. Desperate to move something, anything - an arm, a leg, even just her toes - that a power she didn’t even know she had caused one of the medical monitors to fly across the room and smash into the wall._

_Lex was the first by her side, and the only one who stayed. The only one who cared. Knowing she couldn’t answer, he had spared her the pain of asking questions. He simply held her in his arms as she cried herself to sleep._

_After that night Lex had moved his lab into Lena’s room so she wouldn’t have to be alone again. The dreams didn’t stop, but her brother’s presence had made them less pressing than that first night. It was three years before Lex found a cure, four before they saw results. During that time they had developed their own language, based entirely on her ability to move things with her mind. Her favorite was when they would play chess and Lex would tell her stories of alien worlds. They had had to get a physical chess board, since Lena couldn’t use her mind powers on a holo-projection. Of course, Lex had found a beautiful set, a deep-blue and red wooden table, with matching pieces. The images were inspired by tales of a far off world where they had creatures called Nightwings and Flamebirds. Lena had only seen drawings based on travelers reports, but she had been entranced. She clung to the Nightwing piece, the mythological creature comforting with her dream would overtake her._

_It was Lex’s presence at night, and their private language that kept her sane through the darkest, hardest time of her life. It was his presence that helped her rage against the dying of the light._

_Only for him to betray her at the very end._

*

Lena opens her eyes, sits up and moves her legs so that her feet hang off her bed. One and half hours isn’t enough time for her inflamed nerves to quiet down, so she’s waiting until Kara arrives before turning on her implant. She smooths the wrinkles out of her dress, partly an effort to push her memories away, partly to avoid looking a mess for the reporter.

It’s exactly six o’clock when Lena hears a knock at her door, steeling herself, she turns on the implant, walks to the door and pulls the door open, revealing the reporter looking only slightly less flustered than earlier.

“Hi.” Kara clutches her notebook to her chest.  
  
“Hi. Come in.” Lena motions inside and closes the door after Kara. “Have a seat. Anywhere you like.”

Lena raises an eyebrow at Kara’s outfit, which is decidedly less revealing than what she was wearing earlier. Her hair is still pulled back and she wears the button-up and pants like armor and Lena wonders what the reporter is protecting herself from. Once Kara has seated herself next to Lena’s worktable, Lena grabs a seat on the opposite side of the room.

“Now tell me, what questions could be so pressing, that you’ve been following me around for days?” Lena leans forward. She knows how to maintain control in most situations and despite not being able to read Kara she hopes that jumping right into the interview is what will keep Kara on her toes.

“Now that you’re no longer a LSA student, but a fully fledged officer in SpaceForce, what are your plans?” Kara edges forward in her seat, tapping her pen on her tablet.

“I plan on returning to the SpaceForce fleet and someday become a captain. Unfortunately, that isn’t my decision. If they wanted, the Admiralty Board could have me assigned to the lunar mining colony or some garbage detail.”

“Would they really do that? I mean, you are their most famous new officer, after all. That would be a waist of your talent!” Kara struggles to keep emotion from her voice, straightening her back to maintain composure. Lena’s fascinated, the idea she would be treated unfairly, seems to have really upset the reporter.

“There are people who, despite all I’ve done to make a name for myself outside my family, only see me as Lex’s little sister. Since he’s revealed himself to be a xenophobic racist, they assume I must be as well. If you thought I wanted to kill all aliens, would you place me on one of SpaceForce’s premier starships?.”

As Lena speaks Kara nods, taking notes on her tablet. Looking back at Lena when she’s finished. “Your brother’s anti-alien views are widely known, and though you claim not to share them, you helped create and deploy Kr100. Some say that this was a form a biological warfare, seeing as the isotope only affects Kryptonians. Your response?”

Lena sighs. “It was war. I simply found a way to protect my people from an aggressive species, who had attacked us for no reason, and who gained unimaginable superpowers when in our solar system. It’s not something I’m proud of, but I saved lives. I hope I’m never asked to apologize for that.”

“Uh, no.” Kara pursed her lips. “I can see how it must have been a hard decision.”  
  
“What is your relationship like with your brother?”

“When I was young I worshipped Lex. He was the only one who made me feel welcome after father brought me home. It wasn’t his crusade that drove us apart, it was a much more personal matter. He and I haven’t spoken in several years.” Lena avoids the reporters eyes as she speaks, afraid to give to much away. The memories of Lex’s betrayal were something she never spoke of. Just thinking about it left her feeling small, struck by the utter selfishness of his decision.

“Are you seeing anyone?”

Lena blinks. She suppresses the urge to end the interview right here, right now; after all every answer she’s given is already a matter of public record, so Kara must be after something else. Fixing the reporter in her gaze, she seeks out the purpose behind her question. Kara’s eyes shine with nothing but curiosity, untainted by any malicious impulse, nor a desire to gossip. Beyond that Lena can’t say, the woman is strangely hard for her to read.

“No.” She says, biting the edge of her lip. If Kara is after more than an interview with a Luthor, Lena is quite happy to play along. “Are you?”

Kara’s cheeks redden. “Uh, no I’m, I mean yes. Well technically yes, but no.” Her back stiffens as she sputters her response.

That is the effect Lena was looking for, if not exactly the words. The flustered reporter attempting to give a bumbling explanation thrilled her. A power very different from when wary colleagues would salute her, seeing only a dangerous Luthor. This is something she can enjoy, the effect she has when people want her and don’t know it yet.

Rising from her seat Lena walks over to Kara and leans over the reporter, her eyes gleaming. Kara’s breath quickens and she swallows hard.  
  
“Uh, Miss Luthor, this isn’t what…”  
  
“Lena.” She purrs into Kara’s ear. Lena places her hand on the woman’s thigh and she feels Kara quiver beneath her.

“ _Lena_.” Kara protests, a stoniness filling her voice. “This really isn’t why I’m here. You really are beautiful but...”

“But?”  Lena pulls her face away from Kara’s ear only to draw her gaze to Kara’s eyes. Those same inquisitive eyes that hadn't turned away from her, that were full of everything she had forgotten could live in a person’s eyes. Deep _blue_ eyes full of mysteries. In these blue eyes Lena sees a challenge to be better than what the world says she is, she see righteous fire, and a loneliness and pain that are all too familiar. A pain that she can kiss away...

Kara jumps, the moment shattered by a piercing ring.

“Oh, that’s mine.” Kara’s relief is palpable as she glances at her smartwatch. “I, uh, I have to go.”

Kara’s walls go back up and Lena is shocked at how quickly the shift happens.

“So soon?” Lena retreats from the reporter as she hurriedly gathers her things.

“Yes. I’m sorry. This was lovely.” Kara is halfway out the door when she turns back to Lena, all smiles. “Let’s do this again sometime.” And with that she disappears through Lena’s door leaving her with more questions than answers.

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lena is disabled in comics canon so I really wanted to bring that in here. She's still the Lena we all love from Supergirl of course, just with some new layers. I hope that my writing of her disability is respectful, I'm trying not to do the thing Arrow did with Felicity and have her spinal implant be a magic cure-all.  
> I hope the worldbuilding isn't too confusing. See y'all for Chapter 2!


	2. Venture

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The figure turns to her, red and blue armor reflecting the light of the fire, Lena can’t see the face clearly through the mask that covers the eyes. Emblazoned on their chest is a symbol she’s only ever seen on the newsvids, a Kryptonian symbol resembling an S. The Symbol of the House of El, and the Kryptonian war hero Flamebird.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long. I've never written science-fiction before and figuring out how to describe the very specific Star Trek setting was more difficult than expected.
> 
> I do also recommend re-reading chapter one before starting this one as it has been updated with some new content. 
> 
> Again, thanks to Minerva_Minion for beta reading, and Khrat_9 for their excellent Reincarnation AU fics. There are more than a few nods to those works spread throughout Into the Stars.

It is aboard the _Venture,_ surrounded by her crew, their murmurs and cold looks that Lena feels the most at home. Even before the war, when Lex had yet to show her his true colors, Luke and Captain Sinclair had made her feel welcome. Not a small task considering how withdrawn she was at the time. Luke had thought it was the hoverchair, but that had never been the issue for her.

Standing on the bridge, Lena watches the crew at their work, only a few briefly glancing her way, most preferring to avoid her gaze. Only two weeks since graduation and she is already back where she belongs, only now she’s not a student. Given the rank of Commander, Lena is now chief Science Officer and second-in-command of the _ESF_ _Venture.  
_

Everyone wears uniforms of various colors and designs that indicate one’s department. Lena’s role as science and command is displayed by her red shirt with gold trim, with three pips on her collar indicating rank. Embroidered over her heart is a design of one large planet surrounded by several smaller ones, the SpaceForce insignia.

All Tactical, Security, Flight, and Command operations are coordinated from the bridge, each having their own station. In the center of the bridge, on a slightly raised dais, is the Captain’s Chair. Next to it is Lena’s science station, from where she can check data on all spatial anomalies and distortions and quickly relay the information to the Captain. At the far end of the bridge, is the viewscreen, where the crew can get a sense of what space looks like and communicate with other ship’s crews.

The captain emerges from her ready room off of the bridge, her gold shirt drawing all eyes. She catches Lena in her gaze and nods. Captain Veronica Sinclair commands attention, she knows what needs to happen and expects to be obeyed. It’s that same air of authority that she demands of Lena.

Sinclair takes her seat in the captain's chair. Lena positions herself next to her, ready to begin as a flurry of reports flow from the crew.

“We’ve cleared spacedock Captain.” Eli says from a console in front of her chair.

Behind her at the security console stands Luke, his shirt and ranking indicating Chief Security Officer. “All stations are ready.”

“Commander Luthor” Sinclair turns in her chair to Lena.

Lena fills her in. “SpaceForce has detected an anomaly on the edge of the Kryptonian neutral zone. We’ve been ordered to investigate. Command suspects that Krypton is amassing a fleet. Though long range sensors are returning very little data.”

  
“And what are your suspicions?”

“The energy signatures don’t match any known kryptonian vessels. Command is chalking it up to sensor error, though the data is clear. There has been a large spatial distortion on the border consistent with a fleet, or possibly, a single massive vessel.”

Sinclair nods. “Thank You Commander. Cadet Wessler, set a course for the anomaly.”

“Aye Aye Captain. Course laid in and engines at maximum.” Eli finishes manipulating the controls at his console.

“Punch it.”

  
Eli throws a lever forward on his console and the _Venture_ is thrust forward through space at maximum speed. The stars swirl in the viewscreen, blur, and disappear as they enter hyperspeed.

 

**

 

_She was fourteen when Luke stumbled upon, a lone girl in a hoverchair out past curfew. She had tried running away before, but tonight was the farthest she’d got without being caught by Luthor Private Security. And when he’d stepped into ally she was hiding Lena thought it was all over, another faceless brute come to take her home. But when the streetlights hit his face, she saw a deep kindness in his features. Even then Lena hadn’t been sure if she could trust him, but when she saw the girl with him, stepping out of the shadows, her long dark hair pulled back in a braid, an imposing figure who Lena wanted nothing more than to follow to the edges of space. Luke introduced himself and his companion, Veronica Sinclair. It was her eyes that drew Lena in the most, sensing the girl didn’t see her in her chair as something to be pitied, but a person with certain limitations just waiting for a taste of freedom._

_That night Veronica had got her into a night club that only served SpaceForce cadets. Veronica herself was prized in SpaceForce, on her way to being the youngest graduate and some said, to being the youngest captain ever. Inside it was unlike anything Lena had ever seen. The only times she had ever gone out were with Lillian & Luthor to their science investment Galas and other even more boring events. _

_The club was filled with SpaceForce cadets of all ages, all wearing vibrant clothes that made you want to look at them. The club had a zero-g dance floor, so Lena could make as much a fool of herself as all the other people, and without drawing eyes. “Dancing” with no gravity was different from what she remembered of regular dancing, and it was one of funnest experiences of her young life._

_After that night Lena begged to be allowed to live on the Venture with Veronica & Luke. Captain Graves had consented eventually, and with her father’s blessing and against her mother’s protests Lena moved on board. _

_At first she had shared a room with Veronica. But as Lena started to notice things about the other girl, her eyes, her hips, her breasts, her legs… it became too much and Lena requested her own room. Though she did want to explore these new feelings. And so one night she had hovered up to Veronica’s door and paged. Veronica let her in and that night Lena learned some amazing new things about her body, and that her paralysis need not prevent her enjoying herself._

_Their relationship continued on like that for a while, Lena going to Veronica’s door, learning all the ways to bring a woman pleasure. They talked, laughed, loved and Lena opened up to her about her dreams and her fear of being consumed by the darkness in them. Until Lena learned why everyone called Veronica_ Roulette  


**

 

The blur of the stars slows, swirls, and stops all together as the _Venture_ exits hyperspace. Slowly, and then faster and faster as the sensors realign to the new region of space, readings begin to flood the _Venture’s_ instruments.

Lena checks the scanner for signs of the disturbance.  
  
“Uh, Captain, Commander, I don’t think we have to look very hard.” Eli’s voice sounds choked as he stares at the viewscreen.  
  
Bearing down on the _Venture_ is a massive ship, of which only a small portion can be seen through the ship’s default cameras.

“Adjust for negative 200 zoom.” Veronica shouts out.  
  
Lena’s fingers fly across her console, the adjustment made before the order was fully given. The viewscreen adjusts in response and the massive ship shrinks to fit. Even at a viewable size the ship is massive.  
  
“Commander, what are we looking at?”

“I don’t know. There’s nothing like it in the SpaceForce records. I am seeing something in the martian’s records regarding a legendary ship the size of a small moon, but they never found anything to substantiate it.”

“I think we may have.” Sinclair’s voice is tight and restrained, whatever she’s feeling remains hidden.

Lena’s console beeps. “I have something. Damnit. They’ve locked weapons on us.”

“Evasive pattern Delta-four!” Veronica’s voice competes with the now blaring alarm. 

Eli moves as fast as he can, inputting command after command to keep the _Venture_ out of range of the enemy’s weapons.

“Incoming fast.” Mercy’s screen flashes. “We’ve got got three incoming torpedoes.”  
  
“Get rid of them.”  
  
“On it Captain.” Mercy adjusts the firing mechanism and is able to hit one of the torpedos with the ship’s laser. 

The third impacts with a thud, sending shockwaves throughout the ship.

“Damage report.”  
  
“Hyper-engine capabilities have been knocked out. We can get them back, but I’ve never seen anything like that.” A voice pipes in over the intercom from engineering.

The ship is wracked with another explosion, throwing Veronica and Lena to the floor. Lena quickly scrambles to her feet and offers a hand to her captain. Sinclair ignores it and comes to her feet on her own.

The view screen flashes and is flooded with static, when it clears their is an image of a grey-skinned alien filling the screen. “We are the Diasporans. You will surrender your captain and she will come aboard our ship via shuttlecraft prepared negotiate a ceasefire. That is all. “

The image disappears and Veronica turns to Lena. “Follow me. Luke you too.” Lena glances at Luke.

“Mercy, you have the bridge.” The young officer nods and turns back to her station.

Roulette marches onto the turbolift, with Lena & Luke at her heels _._

**

_Lena trails after Veronica. Tonight wasn’t just another night. Veronica had finally agreed to show Lena what she gets up to when the Venture docks._

_“With a war on, it’s important we all get a chance to unwind, relax, and most most importantly release all the aggression and anger we keep bottled up inside that allows us to fight as long as we do.”_

_Lena nods. It make sense, though Lena can’t help wondering why if it’s so great, Veronica’s never brought her along before._

_Veronica leads them down the corridor and they arrive at a unassuming door. Veronica knocks and whispers in reply to an unheard question, and the door opens._

_Once inside Lena is surprised to see an empty room, save for a transporter pad and the person who let them in._  
_  
_ “Up you go.” Veronica motions to the pad, and Lena maneuvers herself onto it. Lena has only gone through the new transporters a few times, enough to know they only take one person at a time. Veronica nods to the operator and the tiny room around Lena disappears and is replaced by a much larger, much louder one. She’s only alone for a few seconds when Veronica appears at her side.

 _“This is Eternity, Alpha’s most exclusive club. Even you would have a hard time getting in without an invitation. Lucky for you, tonight you’re a VIP.” Veronica answered Lena’s unspoken question._ _  
_

_“There’s no way you took me through the dirtiest parts of the space station just to get me into a club.”_

_Veronica leans over Lena, her dark braided hair falling over her shoulder. “Lena, love, of course I did. Now, be careful about asking questions, the wrong ones to the wrong people will get you killed, and there’s nothing I or your brother can do about that.”_

_As they push through the crowd the patrons nod to Veronica each saying the same name,_ Roulette.

_“Why are they calling you that?”_

_“You’ll see.”_ __  
__  
_Lena follows Veronica into the depths of the club, revealing a cage at its heart which draws all eyes. A large crowd is gathered around it, waiting for something to begin. She finds a place where she can sit comfortably as Veronica strolls into the center of the cage, spotlights appearing on her. She motions with her hand and the chatter of the crowd dies down, and Lena almost sees a different person._ __  
__  
“Welcome to Roulette’s Rumble. Tonight we have two very special guests, one who we’ve barely been able to restrain. I expect to see a new contender for  Champion! So those of you betting on Lobo, tonight you may want to hedge your bets.”

  
“Our other guests is none other than Lena Luthor, you may know her as the daughter of SpaceForce scientist Lionel Luthor, but I know her as the woman who saved fifty Alliance lives and prevented a Kryptonian invasion of Daxam. Tonight’s fight is in honor of her.” 

 _Lena feels a creeping sense of dread._ A fight? In honor of her? How could Veronica not know this is the last she’d want? _Lena balls her hands into fists._  
  
_Veronica walks out of the cage and a bell rings. On one side of the cage a door opens, and dark-skinned human looking figure stumbles out into the cage, now filled with a deep red light._  
_  
_ “Our challenger is a Kryptonian soldier captured during their failed invasion, he’s killed many an Alliance soldier, and tonight we show him how hospitable we can be. I give you Val-Zod, the Super-Man of the Argo Fleet.” Roulette spits.

_The crowd hisses and boos as Val-Zod stands in the ring, exuding fear and danger._

_From the other side another door opens and a hulking grey figure bursts through the opening._  
_  
_ Veronica’s voice echoes over speakers. “Our Champion, The Main Man, Lobo!”

_Lena hears the figure shouting through the crowds cheers. “The Main Man is here for only one reason. To Rumble! And to Kill a Kryptonian!!! Ooooraaahh!”_

_  
_ _Another bell sounds and the fight commences. It’s over quickly and ends with Lobo standing over the body of Val-Zod, his head smashed into pulp._

_Lena catches Veronica making her way towards her, only to feel like she knows nothing of the woman coming her way. She thought maybe she was falling in love with the reckless commander, but now? Lena senses hatred pouring off Veronica, enough to seriously hurt her if she wasn’t already dampening her powers to survive the crowd._

_“So, love, what do you think? Impressive no?” Veronica flashes Lena a smile._  
_  
_ “So they call you Roulette because you gamble over people’s lives?

_“So many of those Kryptonian bastards never face justice. We die, but they never do. Bringing them to our little fight nights, is a great way to get revenge for all the lives they’ve destroyed, like your father’s.”_

_“You aren’t doing this for me.”_

_Veronica points out into the ring._

_“You see that body? Val-Zod is the one responsible for killing your father, and if you hadn’t stopped him he would have killed thousands more. I brought you justice tonight.”_

_“Veronica, this is wrong. You know that. This isn’t what we’re supposed to…”_

_“Supposed to what, Lena? Be good girls and do what the admirals who’ve forgotten what war is like and diplomats who’ve never faced it, tell us to do? They send us off to get killed fighting an enemy who can’t lose. They don’t care about us, why should we care about their vaunted values? Truth and Justice don’t matter out here.”_

_“The Main Man is ready to accept payment now! Give me what you promised Roulette!” Lobo shouts at them from inside the battle cage, still illuminated by the red glow. A red glow that Lena senses must be important._

_“You’re right. The Admiralty Board doesn’t care about us, but you… You found a way to kill them, and you’re keeping it for yourself, this here, this is murder.”_

_“What does it matter if we kill them here or out in a battlezone? Here we have an advantage, the only known way to kill them, otherwise we’re just sending our fighters to the slaughter.”_  
_  
_ “If you shared this with Science Command, instead of trying to impress me with your warped sense of justice, we might actually be able to win the war.”

 _“Slow down. I found nothing. Lobo here is responsible for everything. He brought this device that emits the red light you’re seeing;  it weakens a single kryptonian to a point they can be killed, he calls it the_ Light of Rao _. But it’s useless to us, only he knows how to use it, and he won’t give it up unless he loses. That man has never lost a fight.” Veronica turns from Lena towards the cage._

_“Give him his payment. He’s earned it.” She turns back to Lena. “As for you, you’re welcome to stay or go. Hatch whatever scheme I know you’re cooking up. But know that if you try to report this, they’ll never find it.”_

_Lena watches Veronica walk away as she makes the decision to return to the ship. For the time being she isn’t going to say anything, as there is something much more important on her mind. Lena and Lionel’s research into Kr100 had proved not entirely successful, they’d only been able to develop it enough to act as a barrier; however, that red_ Light of Rao _could provide the answer Lena needs to finish their work. And maybe change the tide of war._

 

**

 

After a few seconds the turbolift door opens again onto the shuttle bay and Veronica, Luke, and Lena step out. Veronica steps toward a nearby console and opens the hangar bay doors, beyond is cold space kept out by level atmospheric force fields.

Veronica turns to Lena “Lena you’re the captain now. And Luke I’m promoting you to first officer.”

“Captain...” Lena starts to object but is cut off.

“You’re the captain now, not me. You two, take care of eachother. And my ship.”

Luke glances at Lena, a pained look on her face. “We will, I’ll keep her out of trouble.”

“That’s a good man.”

Veronica turns and climbs into the nearest shuttle, Lena climbs in after her. “Veronica, what are you doing? You can’t just leave like this, the captain of a starship can’t just surrender herself.” 

“Oh my sweet girl. I’d have thought you’d learned by now that victory doesn’t come by following the rules. We have to be willing to take risks and flaunt the rules.” Veronica reaches out and cups Lena’s cheek. “Don’t let Luke kill himself protecting you, and remember that just because your dreams frighten you doesn’t mean you have to avoid them.“

  
Lena climbs out of the shuttle and the door closes, separating her from her former captain; She reaches for Luke’s hand as the shuttle takes off towards the Diasporan’s ship. It passes through the open hangar doors and the atmospheric force field.  
  
The shuttle moves out of the range of the _Venture’s_ shields, growing smaller and smaller the further away it gets. As it nears the hulking monstrosity a red beams shoots out from the hull of the Diasporan vessel and tears through the shuttle.

Lena screams and the ship rocks beneath her, she grabs Luke to steady herself before she falls.

Through the open door of the hanger Lena sees the shields flickering as they are bombarded by laser beams from the enemy ship.

“Bridge this is the Captain, tell me what the hell is going on.”

“Lena?” Mercy’s voice comes through the intercom, intercut by static. “Where’s Captain Sinclair?”

“She’s gone.” It’s all Lena can do to keep her voice from breaking. This is what’s she’s trained for, and she has a ship and crew depending on her. Veronica Sinclair was gone now, yet… She was her _still_ her captain.

Lena and Luke fly across the room as the ship rocks again.

“What’s the status of the shields?” Lena demands.

“Thirty percent Captain. Their weapons are stronger than anything an alliance vessel has ever faced.”

Slowly rising from where she was thrown to the floor, Lena begins issuing orders.

“Mercy, divert power to the shields from recreation and non-essential research areas. Eli, show us some of that fancy flying.”

“Yes ma’am!” They both respond over the comm.

“Luke, I need you to get teams together and send them deck by deck to make sure everyone has made it to safe areas. Once that’s going get to the bridge and make sure Mercy & Eli don’t lose our ship.”

“What about you?”

“I’ve got to make sure our visitors leave us alone.”

Luke turns and passes through the turbolift door but Lena’s voice stops him before he’s gone completely.

“And Luke?”

“Yes?”

“Stay alive.”

Luke grins at her. “You know it!” And with that he’s gone.

Lena runs over to the nearest computer console and pulls up the display for the _Venture_ ’s internal transporters. She locates the material she needs from the engineering deck and cargo bays and directs them to her location. A container of stabilized dark matter, wiring, detonation and activation devices and other pieces from engineering materialise and she sets to work.

What she wants to do is make a bomb and get it aboard the enemy ship, but without knowing who and what is aboard that thing, there’s no way of knowing what exploding it will do. The next best thing would be something like an irradiating pulse, if she can set the dark matter to release when it comes in contact with radiation and program the device to release enough of the irradiated dark matter that it would incapacitate everyone on board within seconds of release..

Looking out through the hanger bay doors, which are now jammed open, Lena can see how Eli is trying to maneuver the _Venture_ away from its assailant, but no matter how far they pull away the Diasporan ship is always right back on top of them.

The device is coming together in her hands when Luke’s voice pops in over the comm. “Commander, I mean Captain, our shields are at 2%, whatever you are planning, it better happen now, once the shields are down their weapons can tear right through our hull!”

“Just keeping the hangar atmo field from going out, I’m working on…”

Lena is interrupted by an explosion, before she can regain her bearing, four Diasporans appear in front of her. She grabs for the gun at her side only to have it knocked out of her hand by one of the towering grey figures.

“Captain?”

A grey hand reaches out and Lena feels it’s grip on her throat as she’s lifted from the ground.

“Captain? What’s going on?”

Her lungs struggle to fill with air as dark spots appear in her vision. She tries to pry the creature loose, neither her hands or her mind accomplishing the task. As the edges of her vision blurr and the world grows dark, the last thing she sees is the creature’s ugly scowl as Luke’s voice screams her name over the comm.

An eternity passes before the hold on her neck loosens slowly and then all at once. Lena crumples to the ground, her neck sore and her breath coming in gasps. The Diasporan that was holding her is nowhere to be seen as the other three are engaged in battle with an armoured figure in a red cape. Her vision clears and her breathe evens out. Standing slowly Lena grabs her gun from where it fell and raises it at the Diasporans.

Except all four of them are out cold, and the caped figure stands over them, exuding strength and invulnerability.

Lena immediately activates her comm.

“Luke, please tell me we haven’t lost this ship.”

“Lena? You’re alive?” Relief floods Luke’s voice. “Not yet, but they’ve managed to beam over boarding parties to just about every deck, we don’t have the firepower to deal with all of them.”

“I’ll think of something. We may have some unexpected help. Don’t ask, I’ll fill you in later. Lena out.” She shuts her comm down and turns her attention to her saviour.

 

“I don’t know who you are but just because you saved my life, don’t think I won’t throw you in the brig for trespassing.” Lena’s threat is empty, after all if the intruder can take out four Diasporans on their own, what can she do?

The figure turns to her, red and blue armor reflecting the light of the fire, Lena can’t see the face clearly through the mask that covers the eyes. Emblazoned on their chest is a symbol she’s only ever seen on the newsvids, a Kryptonian symbol resembling an S. The Symbol of the House of El, and the Kryptonian war hero Flamebird.

Looking at Flamebird with her blond hair, is like looking at a storm of fire of which she is the calm center. “Are you okay?” When she speaks it’s almost as if Lena knows her voice. It frightens her.

“I’m fine.” Lena projects as much strength as she can muster, it won’t do to look weak now. “Thank you for that. Now how did you get on my ship?”

The hero poses arms on hips matching Lena in projecting strength. “Same way they did, punched a hole through your shields.”

Lena sighs. “I’ve got it from here. You can go back to whatever it is you were doing before.”

“That Diasporan had you. If I hadn’t stepped in you’d be…”

“Dead. I know. I said thank you. You can go.”

“What are you going to do against a ship full of those monsters?” Flamebird’s voice is hard and oddly concerned, something Lena doesn’t expect from a Kryptonian warrior.

“I have a plan.” She doesn’t know if it will actually work, since she’s going to have to modify her device to avoid killing those aboard.

Flamebird bores into Lena with her eyes and the only thing Lena can sense is the storm whirling around her. After a moment the hero drops her pose.

“As you say Commander Luthor.”

“It’s Captain now.”

“Captain Luthor.” Flamebird nods, and rising from the floor, flies out through the atmospheric field and hangar doors.

“Computer, seal the hangar bay with the emergency blast doors and don’t let anyone else on my ship.”

The computer beeps in the affirmative and four interlocking doors close over the open doorway.

Lena turns back to her device. “Lena to bridge.”  The intercom flickers on.

“Bridge here. Orders Captain?” Luke’s voice crackles through the static.

“Can you get a lock on the intruders? Beam them off ship?”

“Negative Captain.” Mercy’s voice. “As long as they are awake they emit some kind of interference, we can’t even tell how many there are.”

“Alright, listen carefully. I’m going to release an irradiated dark matter pulse throughout the ship, it is going to knock out all sentient organic life on the _Venture._ Program the computer to transport all Diasporans into space once it can get a lock on them and plot a course for the nearest Alliance star base. Hopefully we’ll have woken up by then.”

“What if we can’t beam them off the ship?”

“Then we’ll just have brought a hostile force inside Alliance space. No time for questions Lieutenant, just do it.”

Lena puts the finishing touching on her dark matter bomb just as the turbolift doors open and another squado of Diasporans marches into the hangar bay.

“Captain we’re ready.”

“See you on the other side.” Lena activates the device and slowly at first then all at once a glowing energy bursts from the machine and the last thing she senses is it passing through her.

***

“Now approaching Starbase Beta 15. No sign of the intruders or their ship.”

Lena walks out of the turbolift into the bridge, head pounding from her altercation with the Diasporans and the unexpected nap.

“We’re all clear ma’am.”

“Thank you Commander Perec. Let’s tend to our wounded and let SpaceForce know what just happened.”  
  
“Lena, are you okay?” Luke’s voice comes through their private chanel. 

“I was just rescued by a fucking Kryptonian superhero, of course I’m not okay. Keep this between us please Luke, the last thing we need right now is the press coming around asking questions.”

“Or the Admirals.”

“Exactly. Let’s just get back and hope we don’t have to answer too many unanswerable questions.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, I apologize if the tech stuff is too complicated, I'm trying to keep it simple and easy to follow, whille still seeming like stuff that doesn't exists yet.
> 
> And I hope you like the first appearance of Kara's hero identity!! 
> 
> Hopefully Chapter 3 will be up before December...


	3. Promotion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lena sighs, shifting in the Captain’s chair, wondering how long before sitting there stops feeling wrong and she can actually enjoy being Captain.  
> All around her the crew rush to finish last minute preparations, the bridge much louder and busier than usual. At her right, Luke sits on the edge of the executive officer’s chair, his head resting on steepled hands.

Sprawling out on her bed Lena stares up at the ceiling, enjoying the mental quietness the plain wood inspires, something very welcome after the past three weeks.

Since arriving at Starbase Beta-15 Lena has had little to time to rest, fielding meeting after meeting and call after call, each time answering the same questions.

Questions she hadn’t wanted to field, questions that bordered on accusations, questions that implied she was unfit for duty, questions about how she survived an attack by four opponents of superior strength _when she’s disabled._

The admirals had barely left her time to grieve, to process how she feels about this loss. Rubbing her temple Lena  thinks back over her time with Roulette- _Veronica,_ the love, the anger, the camaraderie and… she’s sad, and regretful. Emotions she’s unsure if she has time for.

She blinks and a single tear runs down her cheek. She gathers it on her hand and holds it up to the light. Roulette never cared much for sentimentality, reveling in her hard edge. Would she even want Lena to grieve?

 _“Don’t grieve for the dead, fight for the living.”_ Roulette’s words flash through her mind, unsettling in their finality.

A loud ring bursts into the silence. Lena groans, a sound that can only mean another call from Spaceforce. She sits up, supporting her weight with telekinesis.

The app on her computer rings again, the caller ID flashing “Unknown”. Unusual if it’s official business, but she gets into her chair anyway, adjusts her uniform, and calls for the computer to answer the call.

The face that appears, distinctively bald, is the last person she expected to see, and immediately she flips the switch on her implant and rises from her chair, the camera immediately adjusting to follow her face.

“Lex.”

He looks the same since last she saw him, and her heart leaps at seeing his face. Even with his betrayal, her brother was once her hero, and those feelings are hard to let go.

“Hey Sis. Long time no see. You seem to be doing well.”

“No thanks to you.” Her voice is hard, carrying the weight of four years estrangement.

 

Lena catches Lex sizing her up with a clinical and dispassionate eye. She holds herself still, resisting the urge to shift in place. Any discomfort on her part will be read as weakness and Lena is _not_ going to let Lex see her as weak.

 

“Now that’s no way to talk your older brother, let alone a superior officer. With anyone else that tone could get you into some serious trouble.”

 

“But not with you?”

 

“Lena, little sister, you know I care for you too much to let you get in trouble.”

 

“Let me? I can handle myself.”

  
“I heard. You handled the Diasporans with aplomb. If I thought it was possible I’d say you’re beginning to catch up. As it is, your ideas are still derivative. An anti-matter bomb is hardly new territory.”

 

“Just because you thought of it first doesn’t change the fact I made it work.” Smug, she crosses her arms over her chest. “Face it Lex, I may not have many _original_ ideas, but I succeeded where both you and father failed. Don’t think I don’t know why that’s you tried to hold me back.”

 

“Hold you back? Lena I simply didn’t think you were ready. Clearly you proved me wrong, but to attribute such a base motive as jealousy to my actions… you wound me.”

 

Every conversation with Lex is like this, a game of chess, move and countermove, and being unable to sense Lex’s thoughts is testing her patience. It’s like playing chess when she can’t see his pieces.

 

“If you don’t tell me why we’re having this conversation don’t think I won’t hang up on you.”

 

“I wanted to be the one to break the news to you. After a thorough review of your report Captain Sinclair’s decision to promote you has been approved by the Admiralty Board. Congratulations Captain Luthor, the _Venture_ is yours.”

 

Lena grimaces.  “What? I just graduated from the Command program. There’s no way I can be the full-time captain.”

 

“Normally that would be true, but I convinced the admirals to make an exception.”

 

“Why would you do that?”

 

“You’ll see soon enough.” Lex smiles. “Don’t disappoint me Lena, I have some very high expectations and I hope that you’ll do your best to meet them.”

 

She furrows her brow. “What are you going on about?”

 

“I’ll talk to you soon sis.” The call ends and she’s greeted by a blank screen. Taking a deep breath Lena collapses into her chair, shuts off her implant and lets the tension rush from her body.

 

Lex is trying to maneuver her, to use her as a pawn in his galactic game of chess. He must be, even when he cared for her as a child he always had a selfish motive; that he’s at it again makes her decidedly uncomfortable.

 

Especially when this particular move of his is only possible because someone died _completely_ unexpectedly. If Lex thinks her being Captain will be useful to him, why try to prevent her graduation? Why wait until Roulette was dead, why not push for her to have her own command?

 

Lena sighs. Trying to figure Lex out without being able to sense his thoughts has always been a waste of time. All she can do is hope that she plays a better game of chess than he does.

 

Lena looks around her room and notices the walls starting to close in on her, threatening to crush her with the pressure of her new responsibilities. Logically she knows it’s all in her head, but she’s never been good at just telling off her anxiety.

She grabs her tablet from off her desk and sets her chair’s auto-drive to take her to the turbolift.

 

The tablet flashes with a new memo from Spaceforce Command that reflects what Lex just told her. She closes it without reading to the end, muting the notifications as more memos flood her inbox.

 

This is not what she needs right now, all this official business only grates at her; a constant stream of orders, directives, and missives- every one tainted by Roulette’s death and her brother’s meddling.

 

She takes a deep breath, whatever her brother wants, whatever her Captain may have wanted, worrying about how her grief would affect Roulette is not what Lena needs.

 

What she needs is someone to talk to.

 

“Marina.” The _Venture’s_ computer beeps in response. “Where is Commander Perec?”

 

“Commander Perec is in Security Depot 1.”  
  
*

 

Lena hovers off the turbolift and down the halls of deck nine, stopping when she reaches the door marked “Security Depot 1”. She presses her hand on the glowing panel beside the door.

 

“Security Authorization Confirmed, Captain Lena Luthor.” The computer chirps in response.

  
The door slides open and Luke looks up from his desk at the center of the room. All around him weapon’s lockers and monitors display various security feeds.

 

“Captain.” His tone is formal, clearly addressing her as a superior rather than as a friend.

 

“At ease Commander. Please.”

 

Luke smiles at her as she approaches. “What can I do for you Lena?”

 

She grimaces. “I just got off a call with Lex.”

 

“That would explain it then.”

 

“Explain what?”

 

“Why you look like your cat died.”

 

“Lex is the worst yes, but it’s not just that he called, but _why_ he did. I got promoted. I’m going to be the _Venture’s_ full time Captain.”

 

“That’s all?” Luke’s voice has a teasing edge.

 

“It’s a big all. And Lex felt it was important to tell me himself.”

 

“Is he trying to unsettle you?”

 

“I don’t know. Possibly.” Lena buries her face in her hands. “It’s not just that. I didn’t want this job at Roulette- _Veronica’s_ expense, but now I have it. What am I supposed to do? I always expected that she’d be around when this happened. With her gone, the idea of being Captain feels almost wrong.”

 

Luke awkwardly shuffles onto his knees to get closer to her and offers a hand.

 

“Give it time. Eventually it will feel less strange to sit in her chair.”

 

“Will it feel less strange that she’s dead?” Lena takes his hand and holds tight.

 

“I don’t know. That’ll be up to you” Luke looks around the office. “Do you want to get out of here? This isn’t usually where I like to have these conversations.”

 

“No.”

 

“Ok.”

 

“You really think I can do this?”

 

Luke brushes his thumb against the back of her hand. “Absolutely. I always knew you were cut out for command, and you’ve proved it time and again.”

 

She lets out a heavy sigh. “Lex doesn’t think so. He says he pushed for me to get this command, and he expects great things, but he’s always waiting for me to fail. I can’t even save my crew without help from some enemy war hero.”

 

“Hey, it wasn’t Flamebird that saved us, we got out of there alive thanks to your quick thinking.”

 

“That’s nice of you to say Luke, but it’s not true.” Lena’s hands ball into fists. “I was almost gone when she appeared. She moved so quickly and with such strength, yet I can rarely stand without extreme pain, let alone punch out an alien trying to kill me.”

 

“You didn’t need physical strength to end the war, your Kryptonite did that. And you don’t need physical strength to be a good Captain.”

 

Luke’s words hit right at home, breaking through the tension clouding her mind.

 

“You just have to know the crew, how to lead them, and how to keep your head in a crisis. And that’s who you are, that’s always come so easily to you. You have nothing to worry about.”

 

“Luke… I still have duties to perform today, I don’t have time for tears.” Lena smiles at Luke, a soft small smile between old friends.

 

Luke furrows his brow, rubs his forehead with his hands, and standing, turns away from her, the energy of the thoughts he’s hiding teasing at the edges of her mind.

 

“Since we agreed I won’t read you, you’re going to have to tell me what’s got you acting so shifty.”

 

Luke walks towards the far wall covered in screens. “Have you had a chance to look through all the Captain’s memos and advances?”

 

“No.”  

 

Luke hides his concern well, only Lena’s abilities telling her that he’s thinking about something that’s really upset him.

 

“Is there something I should be worried about?”

 

“Not really. Just... look through them today and come find me later.”

 

“Fine. Be mysterious. I’ll go do that then.” She shrugs. “Thanks for the chat.”

 

“Anytime Captain.” Luke looks back at her and then turns back to the monitors, dutifully checking that everything is as it should be.

 

Leaving the security office to head to her duties, Lena can’t help but feel that everything is _not_ as it should be.

 

***

 

Her clock flashes _19:30_ when Lena finally sets down the tablet she’s been staring out for what must be hours, the words “Cultural Exchange and Officer Transfer Program” looming large across the screen.

 

This is not the news she expected right after a promotion, losing one of her most trusted people? The worst part is the orders aren’t new, just modified. According to the memo, Roulette had received the transfer orders before the graduation and rather than informing Lena, her executive officer, she sat on them. Had they really lost that much trust, that her Captain hadn’t seen fit to inform her of such a monumental change to ship’s operations? Had Lena ever really known her Captain?

  


To make matters worse there is supposed to be a ceremony in her honor, tonight. But having lost a captain and with these transfer orders, Lena can’t think of what there is to celebrate. The universe must be punishing her for being a Luthor; Lena is not a fan of its sense of humor.

 

The ringing door chime interrupts her thoughts.  
  
“Who is it?”

 

“Me.”

 

Lena’s mouth curls in a smile.  “Come in.”

 

Jess walks into Lena’s room, eyes taking in her full figure. “Of course you’re still in uniform.”

 

A sheepish look in her eyes, Lena looks down at her clothes, decidedly not party attire. In contrast Jess’s dress uniform with its accents highlighting her korean ancestry is almost … _exciting_.   

 

“I can wear what I want. It is my party.”

 

“Hah.” Jess walks past Lena  “It might be in your honor, but it’s _our_ party. We’re the ones getting you as a captain. The woman who single-handedly ended the war with Krypton, and after saving our lives during the Diasporan attack, I think this crew would follow you anywhere.”

 

“Ugh. The last thing I need is five-hundred people willing to throw their lives away for me.”

 

“Here.” Jess hands her a dress uniform she was sure hadn’t been in her closet. “Put this on.”

 

“Where did you get that? I could’ve sworn I didn’t have a captain’s dress here.”

 

“Oh you didn’t.”

 

It’s only when Lena notices the garment bag lying open on her bed that she realizes Jess must’ve brought it with her.

 

“Jess. I only just got the promotion today, how do you have this?”

 

Jess takes back the dress clothes and sits back on Lena’s bed, watching as Lena pulls off her regular uniform. “I have authorization and I figured that you’d be too preoccupied.”

 

With her clothes pooled at her feet, Lena glances up at herself in the mirror, nearly naked, her skin looking like armor keeping the rest of her body intact. Not as indestructible as the Kryptonian woman’s red and blue armor certainly, her bruised neck acts as a reminder of that, but it keeps her alive.  “You know who Flamebird is.”

 

“Is that a question or a statement?”

 

“Both.”

 

Jess sits up, propping herself with her hands. “Kara Zor-El, the strongest Kryptonian warrior, won the Battle of Kalaxtross single-handedly. She’s the daughter of Adjudicator Alura In-Ze and Scientist Zor-El, both members of the Kryptonian High Command. Supposedly she hates humans.”  

 

Lena takes the new uniform from Jess and slips into it. “Why would she be out here? And why save my life?”

 

“Beats me, boss. Maybe she’s trying to trick you into a life debt. You know, she saves your life, you owe her a big favor. Could be she wants to seduce the woman who defeated her people. Destroy her through betraying your love.”

 

Shocked, Lena turns back to Jess, only to see the twinkle in her eye that means she’s teasing.

 

“You always do that. You tease me everytime I even talk to a beautiful woman. Jess, she really could be dangerous.”   

 

“All I’m hearing is that she’s beautiful.”

 

Lena’s eyes go wide in embarrassment.

 

“Shut up and just make sure this is on right.”

 

“Fine, fine.” Jess rises from the bed to adjust Lena’s uniform, straightening out the gold trim so that every inch is visible.

 

“Yeah. It looks good.” She tucks the zipper out of site, and brushes some dust off her shoulders.

 

“I’m serious Jess. How can I successfully captain a starship, be a role model for the crew, when I have to rely on my life being saved by someone who by all rights should want me dead?”

 

“Come on Lena, I know you don’t have _that_ low of an opinion of yourself. Needing help while under attack from an unknown enemy isn’t something you should be ashamed of. If anything you should be honored that someone like Flamebird thinks you’re worth saving.”

 

“Why?” Lena pulls her hair back into a tight ponytail, holding it there with a silver headband.

 

“You have to have heard the rumors. That since the war ended she’s been appearing throughout Alliance and Kryptonian space, saving lives when needed. Calling herself a defender of peace.”

 

“Honestly, no. I’ve left the weird obsession with soldiers turned superheros to Lex.”

 

“That’s just it. Your brother’s anti-kryptonian views, your and Lionel’s work on Kryptonite. There’s no love lost between the House of El and the Luthors. So why save you, unless she’s decided you’re worth it?”

 

“It doesn’t matter. I don’t need a hero Jess, I don’t want one. I have you, Eli, and Luke. That’s all I need.”

 

“Okay.”   

 

Lena takes the opportunity granted by the pause in conversation to change the subject.

 

“You don’t think it’s wrong for me to be Captain do you? I mean, since Roulette’s death made it possible.”

 

Jess grabs Lena and turns her so that they are face to face. “Not at all. It’s what you’ve been working for. Now you can finally prove yourself to anyone who doubts you. You are gonna be a great Captain, and no matter what L-Corp has always got your back. ”     
  
“Hmph.” Lena hugs Jess tight. “Thank you for believing in me.”

 

The two women pull apart and Jess gives Lena another glance over.

 

“No chair tonight?”

 

“You know I never give speeches in the chair.”

 

Jess links her arm in with Lena’s and smiles at her. “You can always lean on me if you need to.”

  


***

 

Lena is taken aback by the gathering’s upbeat vibe, the lounge adorned with streamers and other decorations, smiles on the faces of those milling around and laughter filling the room. Luke and Eli stand over by the refreshments, chatting through bites of food. From her table in the corner, nose buried in a book, Ensign Mercy Graves catches Lena’s eye.  
  
“Captain’s here!” Her voice echoes through the crowd.   
  
All eyes turning to her, Lena leans over to Jess. “When did this become a _fun_ party?”

 

“Try and enjoy it. Soon enough we’ll be back in your room, lights down, and just L-Corp to keep you company.” Jess says before disappearing in the direction of the drinks.  


Lena begins making her way through the crowd toward the raised platform where she’s expected to give a speech. The thoughts of the officers and crew press in on her, dulled slightly by her implant; however, Lena senses much less sadness that she expected, their spoken condolences for the lost of Roulette never penetrating deeper than their surface thoughts.

 

She nods and smiles at them, returning each with a thank you. At the opposite end of the room, Lena stops under a banner emblazoned with the Alliance’s insignia. With the lack of a formal atmosphere, Lena runs through her speech, wondering if it is still appropriate. Lena almost doesn’t notice Eli practically pushing a glass of red wine into her hand.  
  
“Captain, you look like you need to loosen up. This is a party, have fun.”

 

Lena takes the glass, shooting Eli a disapproving glance.

“Is this your doing?”

 

“What? It’s not every day one of your best friends becomes Captain. We couldn’t ask for anyone better to take Roulette’s place.”

 

Lena frowns. “I’m not taking anyone’s place Eli.”

 

“Right. Sorry. I’ll, uh, leave you to your speech Captain.”

 

“You know you can still call me Lena right?”

 

“Yes Captain Lena, of course.” Eli attempts to wink at her before turning away.

 

Lena sighs and takes a sip from her glass, letting the velvety liquid roll over her tongue. Eli disappears in the crowd only to appear a moment later amongst a group of junior officers, like him all waiting for her to say something. She glances over at Jess and Luke, both chatting with Commander Hesiod. Despite their pact she can sense Luke’s mounting apprehension, competing for her attention with the crews eagerness for her speech.

 

Lena takes a breath and taps her glass, all eyes turn to her.

 

“Esteemed crew of the _ESF Venture,_ thank you for being here tonight. Spaceforce is a promise, a promise that we will strive for something better, a better world and better versions of ourselves. Captain Veronica Sinclair believed in that promise, and she believed in your ability to to fulfill it.

 

As many of you know I was recruited into Spaceforce by Veronica Sinclair. Lauded for tactics that always seemed like a gamble, she earned herself the callsign Roulette. She never let protocol or regulations stop her from doing what she thought needed to be done to save Alliance lives. And she saved so many, each and every one of us owes our lives to Roulette.

 

I know I do. Roulette found me as a scared child and introduced me to Spaceforce. I learned from her leadership and devotion to humanity how to honor life, to look past the Luthor name I was born with and become a scientist worthy of being her number one.

 

I am not, however, claiming that we always got along or that we agreed on everything. I am saying that she always inspired me, and it is partially thanks to her unusual methods I was able to develop the Kryptonite that allowed us to fight the Kryptonians to a cease-fire.

 

I stand here today because, true to her callsign, our brave captain gave her life in a desperate gamble to keep her crew alive. Roulette’s sacrifice will not be forgotten, and even as we begin a new era aboard the _Venture_ she will always be with us.”

 

Applause and shouts breaks out from the crowd washing through Lena.

 

Once the noise has died down she continues.

 

“Now that repairs are complete, Spaceforce Command has given us our next assignment. We have the honor of being a testing ground for a new ‘cultural exchange’ program between the Alliance & Krypton. This means we will be rendezvousing with the Kryptonian vessel _Flower of Heaven,_ in order to make an exchange of officers and crew.

 

The names of those transferring will be announced in the next few days. As it is, I think it is important we are prepared to have individuals aboard who we may have fought against, who are responsible for lost Alliance lives.

 

“I know this is a big change, one that follows right on the heels of losing our captain. Our family is changing, instead you’ll be exploring an alien culture on an alien vessel with an alien captain. It will be difficult, but you’re all Spaceforce officers, you’ve trained for this kind of challenge. We may think we’ve learned everything about the Kryptonians we need to know; however, as scientists and explorers we cannot truly know something or someone by simply fighting them. We have have to study it, by living alongside them in an era of peace.

 

We all lost loved ones in the war, and that pain is still fresh for many of us. I will not lie to you, this won’t be easy. I want you to remember that Captain Sinclair believed in you, and I believe in you. Join me in boldly going where none of us have gone before.”  

 

As she finishes speaking Lena feels the room shift towards an inquisitive mood, each person wondering if they’re being transferred. Luke jumps up on the platform behind her, holding his glass high. “Let’s hear it for Captain Lena Luthor! Long may she reign.”

 

Lena groans as Luke’s eyes meet hers, cheering her on along with the crew. She turns her back on him to look for the rest of L-corp.

 

The musicians resume their playing, this time an upbeat pop song to warm the mood of the room again. Lena finds her way over to where Jess and Eli have perched at a table in one of the less crowded areas of the lounge.   
  
“They’re taking this better than expected.” Lena slides into the booth, motioning to the crew. She takes another sip from her drink, waiting until Luke sits down to continue. “This really is all too much. First we lose Sinclair, now I’m supposed to give you up and get some Kryptonian in your place? How am I supposed to captain this ship without you?”

 

“You’ve managed without me before. And you’ll have Jess and Eli to lean on, you’re not going to be alone.” Luke smiles at her.

 

“Yeah, you’ll still be around people you know, even if the situation isn’t exactly comfortable.” Jess’s hand rests on hers, the familiar touch comforting.

 

Lena turns to Luke. “Is this what you were being weird about earlier? How did you know?”

 

“I overheard a conversation in her ready room back when Sinclair first got the orders. It ... obviously wasn’t my place to tell you.”

 

“For some reason she felt the same way.”

 

Luke chuckles. “She’d have waited to the last minute to tell anyone, the woman was paranoid about security. It’ll be good for us, I think. The _Venture_ has the most human dense crew of all SpaceForce vessels, the Martians, Daxamites, and Saturnians need someone who isn’t human to look up to.”

 

“I know, I was planning on requesting Commander Imra Ardeen be transferred here, but there’s already so much bad blood between us and the Kryptonians, having her and them aboard would be a recipe for disaster.”

 

“Hopefully we’ll get someone who’s easy to get along with and hasn’t killed too many Alliance citizens.” Jess smirks at Lena. “Maybe it’ll be Flamebird, I heard she used to serve aboard the _Flower of Heaven._ ” The suggestive tone in her voice sends fire into Lena’s cheeks.

 

“Jess! Enough.”

 

“Am I missing something?” Eli looks back and forth between the two women. “Lena, why are you pink?

 

“It’s nothing. Jess just has an overactive imagination and assumes I’m one of those women who’d fall for someone just because they saved my life.”

 

“I wouldn’t. Especially if it was Flamebird.” Eli says harshly.

 

“Right, Eli. I’m sorry.” Jess looks chastened. “Your parents.”

 

“I just don’t understand why she’d save you when she let my parents die.” Eli mumbles into his glass. “What makes you so special?”

 

“Nothing. Believe me, I don’t understand it any better than you do.” Lena smiles sadly.

 

“It’s not likely to be Flamebird anyway.” Luke offers. “Kara Zor-El’s been on leave from active service since before the war ended, rumor is that she’s effectively been dishonorably discharged but Kryptonian High Command won’t come out and say it publicly because of her parents.”  

 

“I know this won’t be easy for you, to have them on board, but this is partly why we have to do this, to get over the anger and the hate that has been festering ever since the war.”

 

“If you say so Captain.” Eli cross arms over his chest.

 

“Who's the _Flower of Heaven_ ’s captain?” Lena asks.

 

“H’El, Kara Zor-El’s older brother. He’s ruthless. You remember the Battle of Zantos?”

 

“Yeah, SpaceForce lost an entire fleet in one day. Would have lost more if I hadn’t got the Kr100 working.”

 

“H’El was the fleet commander there. You think Val-Zod and Dru-Zod were bad, this guy’s worse. If he had any say, he’s gonna make sure we get someone it’ll be impossible to get along with.”

 

Lena scrunches her brow, resting her head in her hands. “Alright. We’re not going to accomplish anything by hiding in the corner, so go celebrate, party, do whatever it is you need to do before we head out. Just try not to think too hard about this.”

 

“About what? The hordes of Kryptonian soldiers we’re expected to open our doors too? Yeah, I’ll definitely not be thinking about that.” Eli walks away from the table, his anger intense enough to block out Lena’s sense of the rest of the crew present.

 

“He’s not going to cause trouble I hope.”

 

“Not your problem anymore Mr. Perec. I’m serious you two, go enjoy yourselves. Let me do the worrying.”

 

Luke makes a gruff sound as he rises from the table. Jess slides out after him, giving Lena a kiss on the cheek.

 

“Not a chance Captain.”

 

Lena sits alone in the booth, watching L-Corp mingle with the rest of the crew. They’re all good people. Saying goodbye to any of them would be hard.  

 

***

 

 _Lena looks out through one of the_ Venture’s _many viewports at the battle raging around her. The great Kryptonian warships with their groaning engines firing into a sea of SpaceForce vessels that in turn explode into flames and are snuffed out by the nothingness of space._

 

_A shift, the ships transform, the Kryptonian ships becoming the single massive Diasporan vessel and the Spaceforce fleet becoming Sinclair’s shuttle. Through the vacuum of space Lena hears a despairing cry as the shuttle explodes._

 

_Another shift, and a familiar hand rests on her shoulder, comforting in the way a memory is._

 

 _“This is how it ends for us.”_ Lionel’s voice is small, as if coming from far away.

 

_“It can’t be.” Lena’s brow knits in confusion. “I stopped them, I won the war.”_

 

_“Yes Daughter, I know. My brilliant Lena, you finished what I couldn’t, you created a weapon that made it possible to kill them. And you think they won’t take revenge? Don’t be foolish. Be more like your brother.”_

 

 _“Father.” Lena turns to look at Lionel, his face distorted, stuck in the agonizing moment of his death. A shift, and the_ Venture _disappears,_ _a red sun glares down at Lena and her father, illuminating a field of bodies that stretches as far as she can see. Amongst the bodies she sees the ruins of a building that is at once the Luthor Science Academy and what looks like the Kryptonian Science Command. Lionel morphs, his clothes change to a white suit and his hair disappears, and in a flash he looks ten, fifteen, twenty, thirty years younger and then Lex is the one standing before her._

 

_“Sis. You have a choice. Either destroy them, or they will destroy us. You know this peace is tenuous at best. Once they start boarding our ships, once they have our confidence, they’ll slide the knife in. They can’t be trusted.”_

 

_“What can I do?” Lena’s voice comes unbidden, the question escaping despite herself._

 

 _“Sweet sister. You’ll know when the time comes.” Lex smiles before vanishing along with the red-sun soaked field and she’s aboard the_ Venture _again struggling for breath as the Diasporan hand around her throat squeezes harder. The hand changes from grey to one encased in armour, extending from the blue and red clad figure of Flamebird. Her blue eyes turn bright red and release a scorching heat that consumes Lena._

 

_*_

 

Lena’s eyes open into darkness, her breath comes in ragged gasps before she realizes that it was only another dream. Here aboard her ship she is safe, her kryptonite capable of protecting her from any ill-intentioned Kryptonians. Resting on her arms she sits up on her bed.

 

“Marina, low lights. And make me some orange spice tea.”

 

The computer beeps in affirmative, Lena slips into her chair as the lights slowly turn on. She moves over to the replicator and retrieves the newly steaming cup of tea. After a few sips her nerves begin to calm down and she’s able to separate her dream from reality.

 

Anchored in her chair, warmed through by her tea, the images of her dream, her father, brother, and flamebird vanish into the night, only Sinclair’s death remaining fresh in her mind and it’s not long before she is wondering why this particular nightmare seemed so pressing.

 

***

 

The tablet in her hand isn’t telling her anything new, yet the act of reading it over again feels comforting. Today she’s losing her first officer and longest friend, and the _Flower of Heaven_ hasn’t even done her the courtesy of naming who their sending over as a replacement. All the tablet tells her is they’re some war hero.

 

Lena sighs, shifting in the Captain’s chair, wondering how long before sitting there stops feeling wrong and she can actually enjoy being Captain.

All around her the crew rush to finish last minute preparations, the bridge much louder and busier than usual. At her right, Luke sits on the edge of the executive officer’s chair, his head resting on steepled hands.

 

“Eli, please tell me we’re in the right place.”

 

“Captain, readings indicate that we are at the correct coordinates. Maybe we got lucky and they’ve decided not to show?”

 

Lena smiles a smile that doesn’t reach her eyes. “Mercy, check your sensors again, there’s no reason for us to be the only ship out here.”

 

“Checking… Captain, I am getting something this time. A capital-class vessel approaching from the direction of the Kryptonian border.” The martian’s voice is tight, masking the turmoil Lena senses from her. “ID tags check out, it is the _Flower of Heaven,_ rendezvous should be complete in ten minutes.”

 

“Finally. Eli, keep the engines primed, Mercy watch them for any signs of trouble.” She turns to Luke. “You’re with me. Let’s go greet our guests.”  
  
Luke takes a look around the bridge, nods at Lena, and follows her to the turbolift.

 

*

 

The turbolift doors open onto a hallway on deck 13, and Lena and Luke walk to the transporter room in companionable silence. Her chest feels almost heavy, like there’s a weight pressing down on her.

 

“You know, for someone who can sense others feelings and emotions, you really suck at hiding what’s going on in your head.”

 

“Oh? Then what am I thinking Mr. Perec?”

 

“You’re wondering if Spaceforce made the right call, doing this so soon after the war.”

 

Lena puts her arm out in front of the door, stopping before going in. “We have to give this a chance right? If Spaceforce believes we can make peace, I believe we owe it to those who’ve died to try. That’s not me being naive is it?”    


“You already know the answer. If you believe in it, it must be right. For as long as I’ve known you, your instincts have always led you in the right direction.” The corner of Luke’s mouth turns, not quite completing a smile. “You don’t need to tell you the answer, you never have.”

 

“Yeah.” Lena lowers her arms and straightens her uniform. “Thanks. Now, let’s go meet this mystery officer.”

 

The doors whirr open as they step into the transporter room. Lena waits by the control console, staring at the transporter pad where her new commander will arrive. The minutes go by slowly as her transporter technician coordinates with the _Flower of Heaven_ to ensure everyone arrives in one piece.

 

“We’re ready ma’am.”

 

“Thank you Chief McConnell. Bring them over”. McConnell’s hands fly over the console and on the transporter pad orange and blue particles fill the the space where the Kryptonians will appear. In the few seconds it takes for the particles to assume a humanoid shape Lena runs through the very few kinds of person her new officer could be: driven, ruthless, efficient, savage: honestly her knowledge of how Kryptonians act outside war zones is limited, something she’ll have to remedy.

 

The transportation process completes revealing two Kryptonians, one wearing the Kryptonian’s black uniform with a Captain’s insignia and the emblem of the House of El, the other in a similar black jumpsuit bearing only the s-shaped emblem.

 

“You must be Captain Lena Luthor.” The husky voice pulls her focus to the first and larger of the two arrivals.

 

“Yes.” Lena shakes the offered hand. “Welcome aboard the _ESF Venture_ Captain H’El. This is my first officer Commander Luke Perec, who’ll be transferring to your command; we’ve eagerly awaited your arrival.”

 

“No doubt. It is unfortunate that Captain Sinclair perished before this meeting, I was looking forward to that encounter. Her tactics during the war were very _unorthodox_ for a SpaceForce officer.”

 

“Yes, she certainly had her own way of doing things.” Lena glances away from H’El to the second arrival, a figure with long blond hair and broad shoulders, who has remained unmoving since appearing on the transporter pad.

 

“Forgive my rudeness. Allow me to introduce your new first officer.” H’El gestures for his companion to step forward.

 

It is in her psychic mind that Lena first makes the connection as the officer walks towards her and their eyes meet.

 

“ _Commander_ Kara Zor-El.” H’El’s emphasis barely registers before Lena’s own recognition can form.  

 

Kara’s eyes remain fixated on her, a piercing gaze that forces Lena to stifle her surprise and meet in kind.

 

She blinks.

 

“It’s You.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for the patience everyone. Sorry this took so long. I had surgery in December so for a bit there I wasn’t able to focus on writing at all. And for whatever reason this chapter proved particularly troublesome.
> 
> I have the next one close to done, so hopefully it won’t be like 4 months before we update.
> 
> :)


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